First Official Constantine Photo Shows Matt Ryan As An Occult Detective

Production is underway for Daniel Cerone and David S. Goyer's pilot adaptation of DC Comic's Constantine, and today NBC has given us our first look at the lead character. The photo shows us Matt Ryan at John Constantine, the con-man-turned-occult-detective who finds himself reluctantly thrust into the role of defending our world against dark forces from beyond.

I'm not sure if it's smugness or sort of a devil-may-care thing that they're going for here, but everything from his posture and beard stubble to his popped collar, unbuttoned top button and loosened tie gives off the impression that this is a guy who plays by his own rules. From what executive producer David S. Goyer says, fans will be pleased with this version of the character.

“I’ve been a fan of John Constantine since he was first introduced in 1985. This Constantine, envisioned by Neil Marshall and embodied by Matt Ryan, looks like he sprang directly from the comics’ covers. Fans old and new are going to be in for a treat.

You may recognize British actor Matt Ryan from The Tudors, Torchwood, Layer Cake or a number of his other credits. He also has a voice credit on Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag.

At this point, Constantine is only in the pilot stage, but it's one of another DC-related adaptations in development for the small screen. Over on Fox, there's Gotham, a drama that went straight to series and will serve as a sequel to Batman's era in Gotham City, centering on James Gordon. Meanwhile, CW has the Flash pilot in development, which serve as an Arrow spinoff if it goes to series. And Veronica Mars writers Rob Thomas and Diane Ruggiero are creating a pilot for a potential series based on DC's iZombie. That project just cast its lead. So there's a lot to be hopeful for in terms of comic adaptations. If Arrow has proved anything, it's that there's potential for great series based on comic book characters if the show is developed, paced and structured the right way. Hopefully the same will be the case if some/all of these other projects make it to air.

Constantine was first introduced as a supporting character in Swamp Thing in 1985. He went on to be featured in his own bestselling Hellblazer and Constantine comic book series. The pilot is being executive produced by Daniel Cerone and Davis S. Goyer. Neil Marshall is directing based on a teleplay by Daniel Cerone.